https://www.mmanews.com/news/ufc/justin-gaethje-dana-white-ufc-title-shot/
Justin Gaethje is campaigning for what could be his final shot at the undisputed UFC lightweight title.
After nearly a year away from the Octagon, Gaethje made his highly anticipated return last Saturday, accepting a short-notice rematch against Rafael Fiziev in the UFC 313 co-main event. He battled through adversity to earn a unanimous decision victory over âAtaman.â
Back in the win column, âThe Highlightâ rebounded from his heartbreaking last-second knockout loss to Max Holloway for the BMF title at UFC 300 in April. The former interim UFC 155-pound champion confidently maintained that defeating Fiziev could put him right back in the title conversation.
On Tuesday, Gaethje took to social media to make his case for a third crack at the undisputed gold, urging UFC CEO Dana White to grant him the opportunity. He argued that his setback to âBlessedâ shouldnât stand in the way of his championship ambitions.
âI won 3 out of my last 4, only losing in an exhibition fight. I have to fight for the belt. @danawhite I am ready,â Justin Gaethje wrote.
The 36-year-old Arizona native has come up short in two previous title bids, falling to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254 in October 2020 and Charles Oliveira at UFC 274 in May 2022. Undeterred, Justin Gaethje has long set his sights on a showdown with reigning lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.
Interestingly, at the UFC 313 post-fight press conference, White subtly signaled his approval of âThe Highlightâ jumping ahead of Arma
If they dont fast track Topuria, may as well be Justin. Him vs Islam could be competitive.
How many times do we have to watch Justin, Dustin and Charles get their ass kicked by Muslims?
Topuria must be good to go cause there hasnât been a peep about his supposed back problem.
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I would prefer Gaethje vs Topuria for the Title Shot before giving Gaethje a 3rd shot at it
The timeframe would work if they set it up now since Islam fought in January so his track record as of late would have around 6 months between fights.
Sucks for Arman he really sent himself to the back of the line it seems
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They always talk about how deep the talent pool is at LW but insist on giving a guy thatâs 9-5 in the org. title shot after title shot.
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Yeah I was against them giving Topuria an immediate LW Title Shot but looking at the Top 5 LWs currently ranked it might be the most appealing match up other than Arman but he fumbled it which sent him back
#1 Arman -fucked himself by pulling out 48hrs before the fight
#2 Charles -lost to the guy who fucked himself
#3 Dustin -retired already lol
#4 Justin -had 2 shots already and is 0-2 on LW Title shots
#5 Max Holloway -I was surprised to even see this ranking here
When breaking it down I would put Arman at the front but I think they might punish him with a longer path after he pulled out of his Title Shot. So if he is not at the front then fuck it if I was matchmaker Iâm going Gaethje vs Topuria for the shot
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Yep, between Khabib and Islam the division is so stale.
Islam is amazing. But he stole the excitement the division had with Charles as champ. When Charles was in Charge, that was the most exciting the division had been in years.
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Good call
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Let em bang bro.
Hes earned it. He aint beatin Islam, but give him the shot so he can retire.
Motherfucker gave his life to this sport for pur entertainment.
Let em live.
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Nah give Topuria Arman. Give Charlie Olives the next shot, then give gathje the following shot. Then the winner of Arman vs Ilia can get the 3rd third shot.
Plan out a whole year.
Gathje amd Charlie are soon to retire.
Let em bang, one last run.
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Had an all American wrestler friend who rolled with khabib and Gaethje. He told me in pure wrestling Gaethje was the better wrestler.
Illia would run through Gaethje
Justin Gaethje wanted first crack at Ilia Topuria now that âEl Matadorâ has abandoned the 145-pound throne to chase lightweight gold. Unfortunately for âThe Highlight,â UFC matchmakers had other plans and booked Topuria against former 155-pound titleholder Charles Oliveira.
Oliveira defeated Gaethje by submission at UFC 274 back in May 2022.
âHe was pissed,â UFC play-by-play man, Jon Anik, said on The Anik & Florian Podcast. âHe feels like certainly he was passed over in favor of Charles Oliveira for this opportunity against Ilia Topuria and I think what Justin Gaethje and his manager Ali Abdelaziz are looking for is just some sort of guarantee that they will be next because itâs May 19 and the good news for this Topuria-Oliveira fight is that itâs June 28, itâs less than six weeks away.â
Topuria vs. Oliveira headlines the UFC 317 pay-per-view on June 28 in Las Vegas.
âI donât think itâs a crazy request for Justin,â Anik continued. âHaving done what he did against Rafael Fiziev, staying on the fight card, not fighting Dan Hooker, getting a win, distance from the UFC 300 result â and by the way, he fought at UFC 300 to help the UFC when he could have fought for the undisputed championship at that point in time â so I wouldnât be surprised if Gaethje gets some sort of guarantee that heâs next for the Topuria-Oliveira winner. But I can just tell you Justin was not thrilled.â
There are a lot of angry contenders at 155 pounds these days.
The 36 year-old Gaethje rebounded from a knockout loss to Max Holloway at UFC 300 to secure a unanimous decision victory over Rafael Fiziev as part of the UFC 313 lineup back in March. âThe Highlightâ has an incredible 14 post-fight performance bonuses with nine âFight of the Nightâ honors.
Gaethje should demand a new managerâŚfor a guy thatâs always bitching about being passed up multiple times, he canât seem to piece together that perhaps he needs representation focused solely on his best interests, instead of people hailing from Dagestan